Picturesque Innsbruck nestles at the bottom of the Nordkette mountain ridge and is Austria’s only city with the Alps close enough to touch. While most of the nightlife, museums and cathedrals are in the Gothic/Baroque Alstadt, the staggering mountains keep skiers, mountain bikers and hikers busy.

Innsbruck is in the Tyrol region. Duke Leopold III thrust the tiny alpine town into importance in the 1380’s. Maximilian I, Leopold’s great grandson, one-upped his family and made Innsbruck his imperial capital in the 1490’s, instilling culture and political importance. If you tour around town, you will learn all about Maximilian since he constructed many of the town’s eye-catching attractions.